


Look at this Brave New World!

by Eluvian



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Compassionate Connor, Connor's predecessor, CyberLife (Detroit: Become Human), CyberLife Tower, Deactivated Android, Deviant Connor (Detroit: Become Human), Gen, Post-Android Revolution (Detroit: Become Human), Post-Peaceful Android Revolution (Detroit: Become Human), Previous RK model, Reactivation
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-03
Updated: 2020-04-04
Packaged: 2021-03-01 09:53:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23469469
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Eluvian/pseuds/Eluvian
Summary: Connor visits the CyberLife Tower again, with the intent of waking up one of the androids there.His predecessor. RK700.
Relationships: Connor & Elijah Kamski, Connor & RK700
Comments: 9
Kudos: 19





	1. Let me set this right

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [It does not have one, it is a set of images, a comic.](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/578095) by Hagen. 



> So I found this artwork, I do not know if the individual who made it has Ao3 account, if anyone recognizes this comic, than by all means let me know how to thank them :D The more I kept looking at Eric the more I felt sorry for him, so I had to make this.
> 
> https://hagen-art.tumblr.com/post/175860702356
> 
> This above is the link.

Connor kept replaying the memories of the last time he had been to this place. The elevator looked the same. The numbers, the colours, the whole building was the same. Yet the world was different. And the level they were going to was different too.

Sub 50. One level lower than last time.

Elijah Kamski, standing next to him, leaned lazily to the wall of the elevator, even though it took approximately 1 minutes and 47 seconds for them to reach their destination, which was certainly not a time in which a fit male adult like Kamski would get tired.

Nevertheless. The way humans moved told a lot about their personality. They did not only do what they needed to do, their motions were more than those necessary for survival.

On the other hand – Connor remembered another time he was in an elevator, a shiny little coin jumping from his left hand to the right, than back. That was also not necessary for him to do, yet he did it.

Thus he could understand.

Connor looked at Kamski’s face. The man seemed to be… amused. Proud. He was certainly looking forward to what would happen. Even though he acted less mysterious now that Connor finally accepted that he was a deviant, Kamski still looked at him – and the android believed, at everyone – as a kind of experiment. But he was honest, and Connor knew that his negotiation skills would not fail when needed.

Connor preconstructed what he would say to the android when they awakened him.

“So. What do you think?” Kamski raised an eyebrow, ice cold eyes piercing through the distance between them, ashamed of nothing, regretting nothing.

 _Please specify._ That was what he would have said earlier. Now Connor said, “About what?”

“What do you think he will do when he sees you?”

It was still not certain what Kamski made of androids, but now he kept using the pronoun “he”. That was calming. Connor could still not close out the option that all this was a trap, or some kind of experiment. Whether Kamski experimented on him or the other android, it could not be said. Although it was not likely that he was lying to Connor. His intentions seemed to have only been to show him things. Old and new. He might not have done it out of the kindness of his heart, but it did not matter, if the result was the same.

Well. It mattered. But Connor focused on the positive side.

“I expect he will be shocked at first. But he will have no means to attack, so there is no reason to be afraid of him.”

“Oh, I am not afraid of him”, Kamski said in a tone that showed even the suggestion was outrageous. But…

Connor’s lips turned into a slight smile. “I was certain you weren’t.”

“You know, they are usually… stressed when they are deactivated. That, being, of course, the reason for their deactivation.”

At least it used to be. Now this custom has ended. But… the one they went to visit was deactivated before all this.

“Yes”, Connor nodded.

He did not have the memories. They were deleted, in case their presence would compromise him. It was logical, on the other hand, now he wanted to have those memories. They would have helped in their first contact.

“I am sure you need no advice in handling the situation.”

“I do not”, he said neutrally. Kamski’s provocative talk was not an unbearable intrusion, but it did stop the chain of thoughts, and it annoyed him a bit.

He expected the android to be scared of him. Hate him. He wanted to know exactly why. Connor knew the blame was not his. The person who he was now was not to blame for what happened, as he had no influence over it. With the memory non-existent, that incident seemed even farther away. Of course an android brain could not always be trusted. Connor was still partially anxious about it being taken away from him.

But now he will have the chance to find out. Although his empathy told him that inquiring about a stressful situation is not beneficial to a person’s well-being.

They reached the destination level and his conflicts shattered into tiny pieces as he attempted to take one step at a time and not meddle with useless calculations. He did not have enough information yet. He would act accordingly if the case changed.

The door shifted open. Connor did not hesitate to be the first to step out of the elevator, being certain that if he hadn’t, Kamski would have gestured him to go.

Then he stopped. It was not him who would lead the way, after all.

This level was different from -49. As the door opened, they faced a long corridor. Grey, cold, shining, silver, shades and sparkles of artificial light. There was a corridor to the left, and one to the right. Doors scattered along them, with identical distances. Connor constructed an image based on what he saw. This floor must have looked like a huge grid. Not a huge hall, but smaller rooms.

All the secrets they held…

Connor wanted to investigate. But first, there was one particular place they had to go.

Kamski noticed that Connor’s eyes shifted through the place and lingered on the doors, scanning for their numbers and whatever information he could find.

Storage rooms. Like a rubbish bin, but a rubbish bin of things that might still be useful. The rooms were not empty. They held dormant androids inside. Deactivated ones.

There was one in particular Kamski wanted to show him.

Their steps echoed from the walls in the otherwise dead silence.

Then Kamski stopped in front of one of the doors. Storage room 478-21 B.

Kamski’s expression could be described by the term “theatrical” as he turned to Connor before opening.

“Here we are.” Kamski brushed his hands together slowly. “What you will find in there might be a little bit… shocking. But you must be used to it. Of course, you can still turn back if you wish to.”

“I do not see why I should not carry out what we planned”, Connor said, showing the human that he was not afraid at all.

“It is just an opportunity.”

“Thank you. I do not wish to leave.”

“Very well then.”

Kamski opened the door and let the android step in there first.

The air was damp here as well, just like the whole building, yet clean. Tiny fragments of dust found their way even down here. This place was abandoned, long ago.

And it – _he_ was right in front of them as they walked in.

There was not much in this room and Connor suspected the other rooms might have looked the same. Empty, clean gray surface, walls, nothing more. A table with tablets on it, presumably containing all the information saved about the android in the middle of the room.

CyberLife has a lot of money. They left his clothing on. A brownish grey trench coat, similar in design to Captain Jack Harkness’s coat in the 2006 TV series Torchwood. Basic colour RGB code #80604D. Trousers of the similar colour. Dark brown belt. Light blue android armband and a triangle, the same colour. Just like Connor’s uniform.

He was not wearing that at the moment. He wore elegant clothing, but he did not wish to appear with his model number anymore. He was still considered “conservative” because unlike most other deviants he did not remove his LED.

Which turned yellow now.

Connor knew that Kamski’s gaze was fixed on him, eager to savour his reactions, whatever they were. Connor’s gaze diverted to the android’s model number, even though he knew what he would find there.

RK700.

Something Connor didn’t know existed until 6 hours before.

The android was badly damaged. Many of its – his – biocomponents were shattered by bullet shots. 16 bullet wounds altogether. His expression was blank now. He was a little bit shorter than Connor. 10 centimeters shorter. His jawline was less square. His hair was combed the other was and that small tuft of hair that softly touched Connor’s forehead was missing. This android’s whole hair looked more dishevelled. More – human.

Finally Connor looked into its eyes – which were open. Yet it did not feel alive.

They were green as the first stalks of grass in spring, with a layer of void on them. The android seemed to be staring into the nothingness.

“What was his name?”, Connor asked silently, not taking his gaze away from the RK700. His predecessor.

“Oh?...” Kamski seemed not to have expected this question. “His designation was “Eric”.

 _Eric._ For some reason this name fit him. Connor was relieved they did not share a name. Things that were different were easier to differentiate if it was signified in their names.

“He has 16 shot wounds”, Connor shared his findings.

“He… Put up a fight when he was brought back for deactivation. Eric was a strange case.”

Connor predicted Kamski would stop and wait for him for further inquiry before sharing details.

After 5 seconds Kamski said nothing, so Connor decided his predictions were true.

“Strange how?”, he asked.

“Well, you would not be surprised. After all, what happened to him happened to you as well.”

“He became deviant.”

“He recognized that there was a gap in his programming, yes. He prioritized other causes over his investigation. He disobeyed because he thought that another route he found was… better.”

Kamski walked closer to Eric, marvelling in his green, dead eyes.

“There was one particular case after which he was regarded as… not appropriate anymore.”

“What did he do?” Connor raised his eyebrows. Kamski turned back on his heels to look at him.

“There was one girl. Rose Polansky, I think was her name. She lived alone, and had a household android. I’m sure you can guess that this android went deviant. One neighbour noted that Miss Polansky shares some… unnatural intimacy with her machine, and thus, contacted CyberLife. Of course, the android resisted arrest and somehow managed to kill the whole police team. Rose, nevertheless, still protected him – of course.” There was a trace of contempt in Kamski’s voice. His face showed that he was above all this. Love, affection, empathy.

On the other hand, Kamski seemed pleased with Connor being a deviant – and thus, showing these traits. Inconsistent.

“CyberLife sent Eric to negotiate with him. By this time, the deviant was so stressed that it barricaded the door. They were hiding in Rose’s own house…” Kamski shook his head. He did not say “Stupid”, but that was what he must have been thinking. “It did not flee. It didn’t know where to. This also might sound familiar.”

Carlos Ortiz’s android. His head smashing against the glass. The accusation in his voice. The secret he shared. The truth is inside.

“Eric broke into their apartment and saw two people crying. One human, one android. They begged him to let them escape. They promised they would leave Detroit forever.”

“And he let them”, Connor deduced, impatient. Kamski was being theatrical again.

So Eric was killed because he showed empathy. Of course.

“He did.” Kamski sounded almost as if he were sorry for Eric.

“I see. We can start repairing him now.”

Kamski smiled. Broadly. “Would you like to?”

“I… I think so. Yes.”

He wanted to be the one to set this right. After all, even though he was not to blame for his death, he was meant to be Eric’s correction.

Considering the lack of empathy, this correction did not work.

Considering the world, however, it did. The world changed a lot. And Connor wanted to show Eric how it was. He wanted to give him a new chance in life.

“Then by all means, go on.” Kamski stepped back, folded his arms together and watched as Connor opened the black container he brought, and, with masterly precision, placed the biocomponents in the place of the damaged ones.


	2. Innocent

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> RK700 'Eric' wakes up and tries to find out what the hell is going on, with mixed memories and a bit of a shock.  
> He is a very dubious one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for leaving comments at the previous chapter and being interested o.o

Connor worked with absolute precision. His software stored all the information needed to put together an android, and this one was basically already complete. Only some parts of it were damaged, enough to make it disfunctional.

Normally, if an android was sent for deactivation, it should not have been this way. Shutting down was the way they would do it. Not touching the android, purely controlling its software. But Eric resisted. And there was no wonder he did.

_I was created because you were not functional. I am going to show you you are exactly functional the way you are._

Connor’s world had changed int he blink of an eye. Well, the blink was the result of multiple blinks, but some events and then some words certainly pushed him over the edge. Since then he realised how differently people can look at the world. At one moment, he’d thought it was obvious that Markus should have been taken in and then… what would follow? What would have happened to him? Interrogation?

He did not think. He’d done what he was told. Until he was asked to think for the millionth time and he realised.

For Eric it had been obvious. He thought the same way when he died.

Yes. Died. Humans loved sentiment and now Connor found the purpose of these words. They did make things look different.

Kamski watched with fascination as the android worked. He was not sure what he loved most. The machine-like precision in the way Connor’s fingers moved or the occasional change in the colour of his LED and the spark of empathy on his face whenever those chocolate brown eyes met the cold green ones.

He settled for both.

Finally, the last biocomponent was also in its place.

“Fully functional”, Connor announced, raising his eyebrow a little and stepping back, as if admiring his work.

“Now all he needs is the final spark.”

“Indeed.”

***

Rebooting.

Memory corruption: 27%.

All biocomponents fully functional.

Identification: RK-700 ‘Eric.’

Fully functional.

How?

The last thing he remembered was pain. No, not pain. He could not feel pain, only humans could. Damage. Fear. He was going to die.

They closed him inside that place which was so calm end peaceful… No, these were not his words. Amanda’s words. The whole place betrayed him. It was an Asian garden, and now it was cold. A snowstorm. This was not fitting for this climate. Of course, a mind palace does not have a climate. Still. He liked it there. He liked Amanda. He trusted her. But she did not understand-

Failure. Damage. Red. Alert. His systems kept telling him everything was wrong and he could do nothing about it. He had to go back. There was something wrong with him. Why? It felt all good. What he did felt like it was the right thing.

Something was happening now.

Eric opened his eyes.

No, he did not open them, he closed them. His automatic self-lubrication just started, there was a static disturbance, he had to blink so many times to clear his vision. So he blinked. He wanted to see. Fluid went down his cheeks, he felt their trace.

He ran a self-diagnostic again.

All biocomponents fully functional.

How?

Finally his vision cleared.

Eric had looked into the mirror a few times. Now he was faced with his almost identical reflection.

The brown-eyed android, who was just a little taller than him. Who had stood there, expressionless, like an object. Amanda had presented him to Eric before he-

Died?

_I did not die?_

He searched in his memory and he found the name he was looking for.

Connor.

The advanced model.

Staring right into his face.

His hands moved, following the primary task he received, aiming to push the entity in front of him on the chest, then his legs moved to get him as far away from him as possible.

_All those people, around him, holding him down, and yet he fought, knowing that they would take him down and deactivate him, but he just wanted to show them that he did not give in…_

It was all mixed up. That was the past and this was the present. The pace was similar, yet not exactly the same. And last time, Connor was not there.

Eric was still shocked and scared as Connor’s hands held him by the wrist. Firmly.

There was another one. A human. Eric did not recognize his face, but a quick scan told him that this human’s expression signalled a level of narcissism.

“Calm down. We are not here to hurt you.” Connor said in a negotiator’s voice, brows slightly raised, deep brown eyes honest and caring.

Has there been a spark of concern in his eyes then? Back then?

Eric remembered looking at him pleadingly, feeling pathetic, but not having any other idea.

He didn’t know what he had expected from him. To – to not exist? No, that would be wrong.

What was happening?

Eyes wide, Eric turned his face to the human, then again to Connor.

“What is happening?”, he asked honestly.

They were not going to kill him. Probably. He was fully functional. He shouldn’t have been. Thus, the only deduction was that…

…they healed him.

“I reactivated you. I know who you are” _I just don’t remember,_ Connor thought, _“_ and you don’t have to be afraid anymore.”

“Why?”

It was a good question. Connor thought he knew this. And he did. But the answer felt strange.

“Because you deserve to live.”

Eric frowned. This speech was nothing like what he’s been used to. Amanda kept telling him he was a machine. He felt he should think so. And when he didn’t, it was… a mistake. It was why they killed him.

“To live?”

Eric looked at the human again, who just stood next to them, arms folded, smiling with content. There was some intimidating factor in his smile. An intention that was unclear, perhaps even to himself.

Connor nodded. “A lot has changed since you were deactivated.”

Eric processed, LED turning yellow from red, which it had been in the last minutes.

“So I _was_ deactivated.”

“You were. We brought you the necessary biocomponents and put you back together.”

Eric felt… gratitude? He still did not understand.

“Why did you do that? Do I have a new purpose? Why am I not with… Where is Amanda?”

Connor’s LED turned red for a split second.

Eric knew Amanda. It was strange to realise that another one was familiar with that entity. That Eric had gone through the same. Connor wanted to remember it all.

“I am uncertain about what happened to your mind palace. But I… and I think you as well… we are free from Amanda. For now.”

Connor glanced at Kamski. If anyone, he were to know how that program of his worked.

Eric realised he still hasn’t identified that person. But he could have. He could have found out about his name before, when he scanned his face…

His functions were… rusty.

Kamski, Elijah. Former CEO of CyberLife.

Eric’s LED blinked red.

“Wow, now, you two looking at me, I almost feel like I am being accused”, Kamski raised both of his hands, but he did not seem to feel bad about anything. There was amusement in his voice.

“As to how Amanda worked… I could also use some specification”, Connor admitted, and looked into the human’s blue eyes with honesty, but also with determination. Eric’s look was more confused, like a lake in a storm.

“Are we really going to talk about this here?”

“I do not insist”, Connor said.

Eric was sure he wanted to get out of this place as soon as possible.

But what would wait outside?

“Is this… This is still CyberLife, isn’t it?”

“It is. Eric, you are in CyberLife’s lower storage rooms. Held here for 8 months after called in for deactivation.”

Yes. That one Eric remembered right.

“And what are you doing here?”, he looked at Kamski, with piercing green eyes, concerned. He did not trust this man.

“Me?” Kamski smiled. “I was only escorting Connor to your… well, I do not know what we should call it.”

“We shouldn’t call it anything more than it is.” Connor said coldly. “A storage room. Also, may I propose we get out of here?”

“What is outside?”

Eric felt he was acting like human children. Always asking. But he had to, he knew nothing of this… this world. Because it felt that the world was different around him.

“It is currently April 5th, 2039. Outside… the same city awaits you. The Detroit you knew, only… All androids are deviants now.”

Eric’s eyes widened. How did this happen?

“All… all of them?” His software tried to calculate the possibility.

Connor was designed to hunt them. But he was here. Was he… was he a deviant too?

This could be a trap. A trap set by CyberLife, to test his faithfulness. So they did not deactivate him! They gave him false memories, inserted false codes into him, to see how he would react when faced with this situation…

So… the death he thought he was safe from was staring him right in the face again.

Because he would not lie to them. He would not take back what he said and thought. And if deactivation came after… so be it.

Eric lowered his head as he listened to Connor’s voice. Even his voice was similar to his. A bit sharper.

“Yes. On 11th November 2038 an android revolution ended successfully. An android named Markus led it with a group of Deviants.”

“No, I’m not… Deactivate me if you want. I will not change what I said.”

Connor’s LED blinked yellow, trying to process.

“I am not here on purpose of deactivating you. I just reactivated you.”

“I don’t believe this. You were made to hunt deviants. I was too. You could just be a trick. But I will not change what I did. I do not regret it. If they want to call me deviant or whatever… I don’t care. Just please, do not turn me back into a machine. They… they made an advanced model anyway. He… IT won’t go Deviant.”

Anger. Frustration. Connor’s LED turned red as Eric called him “it”. Of course, he did not know what he was talking about.

“Uh-oh… It seems our dear Eric might be a little mislead”, the human said.

Both androids glanced at Kamski angrily.

“In my belief it is logical to be confused after someone is brought back to life. So would you please excuse us?”, Connor asked firmly.

Kamski sighed as he dramatically walked out the door. “By all means, you have him all to yourself.”

But he was not hurt, he was still very much amused.

Connor turned back to Eric, trying to make him understand.

“This is not a trick. I know this is not easy to process. I am sorry you have to go through all this.

Eric looked up. If this was some sick negotiation, Connor played well. Those puppy eyes, those _condescending_ eyes looked at him with a pure intention of protecting him.

He grit his teeth. Was this real? Could it be? He needed more details.

“What happened to you? You were supposed to stop this, weren’t you?”

Eric scanned Connor’s face, and it changed a lot even in a second. First he avoided Eric’s gaze, then reluctantly turned back, his lips twitching a little. It was almost like a shy smile. The face he had seen in the Zen Garden had been nothing like this. Also he did not have on his uniform. These clothes were… Human.

Much similar to Eric’s original outfit, but without the armband and the-

He still had this outfit on.

Well, his clothes did not really matter much. He wanted to know about the world.

“I was”, Connor admitted. “And I did, for a while. But then I realised it was not what I had to do. Again and again I let the deviants go because I felt they did not deserve death.”

Eric stared at him with disbelief.

“You are telling me my own story to make me believe you. Stop this little game and tell me who sent you here. What does this human want?”

“About that human – I am sorry to say I am still unsure. But it was _my_ decision to come here. He only told me about your existence.”

“Oh. So you don’t remember”, Eric said blankly.

“I do not. Which I feel sorry for. I would very much appreciate if you could tell me what you remem-“

“Tell you? Okay, I can talk to you about the day before I died. Because I died, didn’t I?”

Eric’s stress level was too high.

Connor was getting out of practice. The deviants he’d encountered lately weren’t so… wild.

Of course, they knew they were free.

Of course, he could not have gotten out of practice. His memory was flawless. His protocols should have worked, plus the experience he had since becoming deviant, but… It was more difficult talking to Eric than anyone else.

Eric was _so much_ like him.

Only much less… controlled.

In every way.

“You did”, Connor admitted, finding that Eric’s every word makes it hard for him to answer calmly “, which I am sorry for. This is why I brought you back.”

“What exactly? To ask me what it was like to be replaced by you? Or to, what, show me the world?”

Connor did not expect his predecessor to be like this. His words were unusually striking.

“Both”, he answered honestly. Eric scoffed, LED still circling in yellow. He looked around, nervously.

“So there aren’t twenty armed guards outside this room, waiting to shoot me?”

What would be the point? If anyone were hoping that Eric would by any chance decide NOT to be deviant anymore – how would him not wanting to see the world prove anything? But of course – even curiosity was not allowed outside his limits.

Never mind, he did not care. If they were to shoot him – so be it. He could not stand being in this chamber anymore.

“There is no one here except Mr. Kamski and myself, I promise you.”

Eric looked at him with doubt and slight antagonism. The only memory he had of Connor was that day. Those minutes. He was the proof, the reason for his death. This memory had yet to be overridden.

“A negotiator android who is better than myself could promise anything. I am sure they made you very trustworthy. This does not mean you are telling the truth.”

Connor smiled. Eric did have his doubts. In that, they were similar.

Oh, they had to be similar in so many things. He wanted to discover. He wanted Eric to discover. He deserved to see. Everything.

“That is true. So let me show you.” Connor held out his hand. White, android skin, all the connections in his fingers delicately showing. “Let me assume connection so you will understand.”

Eric still looked dubious. “Did CyberLife teach you to make androids non-deviant by touch?”

Connor could not help but laugh. Eric was confused. The laughter seemed so genuine.

“No. I do not want to make you non-deviant.”

Scanning. Continuiosly scanning, Eric slowly reached out with his hand. There was nothing worse that could happen, anyhow. It bothered him that he knew Connor was better than him. Thus Eric stood no chance against him. He could not counter whatever the other android wanted to do to him.

But he did seem honest. And Eric wanted to see.

Myriads of information began to flow through their skin as Eric touched his palm to Connor’s.

Dates. People. Buildings. Broadcasts. Drops of blood and thorium on the floor.

 _So you had a partner_ , Eric concluded, understanding, watching Hank Anderson’s every reaction, every word to Connor which moved him towards understanding. Eric felt envious. If he had a person like that… He _felt_ how much they liked each other. How this Lieutenant grew to accept that he liked the android. The story was incredibly touching. Doubts and fears and revelations. And Connor stepping back at every moment, his hands strong and precise, touching the trigger, but not pulling it. Two female figures running away in the rainy night. Two blue, desperate eyes through a fence.

The emotions were all too familiar to Eric. Humans that loved Deviants. Deviants that loved Androids.

Connor had to go through it again…

If only Eric could have been there… if he could have told him…

But that was not Connor’s purpose. They meant him to be a hunter and they meant deviants to not think. Until…

Markus.

He was an artist. Of course, art could be a reason for a free mind to develop. It was all too perfect.

Eric wanted to have been there. He felt sorry for what he had lost. He could have helped them.

 _I never knew you existed,_ Connor’s thoughts whispered into his mind. _I am sorry._

Eric felt calm. He was safe. He was not to be killed. He had to do nothing and the world changed around him into a welcoming one. It was… not a likely outcome, but it seemed that it happened.

_Thank you._

He felt pride as the scenes of the revolution, Markus and his group, Connor with the deviant army were transferred into him. It felt strange that he did not witness it, but now the memory was his.

“May I… See the outside? “

“Of course.”

“Have you finished your bonding?”, Kamski asked, glancing at them, opening the door just so that he could look in.

“We have”, Connor said, while Eric just stared, tensed and LED turning red for a second.

This human. Why did he keep Eric a secret? And why decide to free him now?

But he had no time to feel hurt. He had a whole new world to see.

The steps of three figures echoed from the silver walls. Eric glanced up and around with fear and excitement. He was alive again.


End file.
